Millions film review

certificate_12A

MILLIONS

It should be expected that when director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) hooked up with writer Frank Cottrell Boyce (24 Hour Party People) the pairing would produce a work of originality and invention, but few could have predicted something of such whimsy. Millions is the wonderfully quirky tale of two young brothers who find a bag of cash, and their subsequent schemes to manage their fortune.

What immediately establishes Millions' fresh perspective is the way the two lads react to their windfall. Seven-year-old Damian (Alex Etel) consults with saints who appear to him as vividly as the living, asking their advice on what to do with the money. He displays an encyclopedic knowledge of every saint, as evidenced by his response to seeing a group of Africans with halos. "The Ugandan martyrs of 1881," he states matter of factly. The saints all advise the young Damian to give the money to the poor and needy, while his older brother's plan is a little less altruistic. Nine-year-old Anthony (Lewis McGibbon) has a shrewd business acumen and thinks speculating in real estate is the best route.

Although Millions features two youngsters, it manages to avoid milking the cute factor and instead sets them up as two spirited individuals, trying to come to grips with a grown up world. Etel and McGibbon strike the perfect tone of youthful wonder and preternatural maturity in their portrayal of the two brothers who have just lost their mother and live with their father Ronnie (James Nesbitt).

The boys learn that with the imminent adoption of the Euro as the standard currency, they have one week to dispose of the cash before it's worthless. This leads to a variety of creative ploys, like taking the homeless to Pizza Hut, giving some to the local Mormons and providing a generous donation to a school charity, a move that causes friction between the brothers. "What did you bring a thousand to school for," utters an exasperated Anthony, "can't you see that's suspicious." "It's not suspicious, defends Damian, before conceding, "It's unusual."